*This review was originally posted for Tenshi no Wakemae, and has subsequently been merged into Idenshi Level Tsurugi*

Esta review también está en español.

One shots are fascinating, in the sense that they manage to tell a story in just a few pages. Resolution has to be quick. That's especially true for those with less than ten pages, in which character development and complexity in general are sacrificed in exchange of style, originality, or at least, a plot twist that surprise the reader.

Tenshi no Wakemae (also known as Angel Share) is about a man who killed himself, and now is in the bar "purgatory". He orders a drink, while waiting for his sentence to go straight to hell for committing the sin of suicide... and the bartender will give him an answer he wasn't expecting. That's everything I can say without spoiling n_n.

The art in this manga is very interesting. On one hand, both the MC and the environment have a serious and detailed design, with the protagonist always being painted in such colors as orange and violet, like accentuating the ugly situation. But, on the other hand, the other attendants and the bartender are very cartoony, with round shapes and simple features. The clash of styles gives this work a particular and very striking personality.

So, like in other five thousand series, movies and books, we have yet another vision of what happens after we die. As I said earlier, the main attraction is the way in which the conflict is resolved. The very limited amount of pages makes the final, at least, interesting. So, rounding up, picturesque script, striking drawing (full color, btw), and only eight pages. I think is a good enough combo to make it worth the read.
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Los one shots son fascinantes, en el sentido en el que se las arreglan para contar una historia en solo unas pocas páginas. La resolución tiene que ser rápida. Eso es especialmente cierto en los que tienen menos de 10 hojas, donde como premisa general se sacrifica complejidad en pos de estilo, originalidad, o al menos, un giro.